


Welcome Home, Soldier

by UnknownAI



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Gen, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-12
Updated: 2015-09-12
Packaged: 2018-04-20 08:28:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,815
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4780589
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UnknownAI/pseuds/UnknownAI
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Boss, this is urgent. It seems that James Barnes is attempting to scale the Tower. Should I activate the defense system?"</p>
            </blockquote>





	Welcome Home, Soldier

**Author's Note:**

> I don't really know what I'm doing here. I actually posted this exact story a couple of months ago but I didn't know where to go from the first chapter so I'm just reposting and leaving it as a oneshot.

It's been two weeks since the Hulk had last been seen, crammed into a Quinjet, before disappearing off the radar.

Two weeks since Clint quit the Initiative to move back to bumfuck, nowhere with his family (who, Tony was still convinced, were agents in disguise).

Two weeks since Steve and Natasha packed up their bags in Avengers Tower, once again just Stark Tower, and left for the new HQ to train the new guys.

Two weeks since Tony lost one of his closest friends to a red guy in green tights and a cape he copied from Thor.

It's been two weeks since Tony Stark retired from the Avengers to come back to a home that was too quiet, too still for his liking.

Tony was a man of pride and dignity (something anyone who knew him would argue) and would never admit to missing his teammates. But in reality, he really did. He used to be able to come up from working for hours with Bruce in the labs or workshop to find Natasha and Clint fighting over the couch and flipping through his expansive queue of movies. Tony would stroll into the kitchen and see Steve, casually leaning his hip against the counter and drumming his fingers along to a old song as the popcorn cooked in the microwave.

Now, the common room was completely empty, all his furniture collecting a fine layer of dust. He rarely strayed into the kitchen and when he did, it was because the coffee machine in the workshop wasn't working and he needed caffeine that very moment. Tony did his best to avoid places he used to hang out with the Avengers. The silence spoke louder than words.

The workshop wasn't much better, either. With the suit hung up, Tony's hands were always itching to do something. There was never anything to work on, especially since he used to spend all his time making upgrades for the team. He tried talking to JARVIS before remembering 'oh right, Vision.' F.R.I.D.A.Y. was fun to banter with on occasion but she was nothing like his previous AI.

Tony had been making his toaster sentient, like he did with most of his tech, when F.R.I.D.A.Y.'s voice chimed in.

"Boss, there's someone standing outside the Tower."

Tony stood back to admire his work. The toaster waddled around on the stubby legs it had been given and gave a cheerful ping. "I'll name you Toasty." He grinned. Toasty shuffled over to Dummy, who had been watching in fascination. Dummy waved and Toasty swung around its cord. "My genius at it's finest," he said to himself as he wiped his hands on a rag.

"Boss, this is urgent. It seems that James Barnes is attempting to scale the Tower. Should I activate the defense system?"

Tony froze at the mention of the name but quickly recovered. "Shit, no no no fuck-" He turned and tripped over a cord of wires, falling with a thud. Toasty peered over the edge of the table in concern. At least, as much concern a toaster could give.

"No, just send him up. And pull up a monitor."

A blue holographic screen appeared in front of his face. Bucky hadn't gotten up more than a couple feet on the wall and that was reassuring. No one wanted to see the Winter Soldier hundreds of feet up in the air, climbing the walls of Stark Tower. Actually, on second thought, maybe they would. The people of New York had a thing for strange sights. Tony then remembered he was getting off topic and shook his head to free himself from the distracting thoughts.

Luckily, Bucky had chosen to go around to the private entrance so he hadn't been seen. The back door swung open, startling him so much he almost lost his grip. He jumped down from the wall, took one last glance at his surroundings, and slipped inside. The Soldier was not comfortable being in a new place and it was didn't take a genius like Tony to tell. He crept through the hall, a hand trained over the gun at his hip. Every step he took was silent and quick and he kept glancing around to make sure he hadn't triggered anything. Bucky had been close to the end of the hallway when F.R.I.D.A.Y. broke through the tension.

"Hello."

Bucky didn't jump, didn't even flinch like most people did. Instead, he whipped out his pistol in the blink of an eye and aimed it in the direction of the voice, which was at the ceiling. His finger hovered over the trigger.

"Who are you?" He sounded low and raspy, like he hadn't spoken in a while.

"I'm Mr. Stark's AI, F.R.I.D.A.Y. He would like to see you." The elevator at the end of the corridor opened.  
"Please, step inside."

Bucky hesitated and narrowed his eyes at the ceiling before walking slowly. He stopped before the doors and checked the elevator for anything suspicious before stepping inside. Tony noted he never put away the gun. He sighed. This was going to be fun.

"Send him to the penthouse. I don't want him being around any of the valuables." Tony pet Toasty for emphasis, who dinged in agreement.

As Tony made his way up the steps, he began to wonder. Why was Bucky here of all places? The Soldier had gone into hiding after SHIELD collapsed and Steve had been looking for him ever since. Perhaps Bucky thought Steve was still here? Tony gave a bitter laugh. Of course Steve wouldn't be here. He left, just like everyone else. Not that anyone could really blame him. Having Tony Stark as a roommate wasn't really as fun as it seemed.

Coming closer to the elevator, Tony started to worry. What if Bucky was after him? He had learned from Natasha the Winter Soldier actually killed his parents and Jarvis, not the innocent car accident he was made to believe. Maybe he was just finishing the mission.

Maybe he was finishing Tony.

Tony gulped nervously as he came to a halt in front of the elevator. He made sure there was enough room so Bucky couldn't grab at him but he still had his gun brandished. He could put a bullet right through the engineer's head before he could even speak. Tony's hand twitched for the suit but he resisted. The Soldier definitely wouldn't feel welcome by being greeted face to faceplate.

The elevator dinged, disrupting Tony's thoughts and signalling the arrival of the cart. The doors slid open and Tony sighed in relief  to see he wasn't staring down the barrel of a gun.

But that moment was short lived.

Bucky's clothes had been soaked with a dark red and his metal arm, upon closer inspection, was cut open, exposing intricate wires and a bunch of little sparks. Bucky himself, was quite obviously in pain but seemed to remain calm, like this happened to him on a regular basis. Tony cursed himself for not paying close attention earlier. Bucky stepped closer towards him, cradling the prosthetic with his good arm, and took in his surroundings.

The penthouse was clean, so immaculate that it didn't look like anyone actually lived there, especially with all the dust. The coffee table had been cleared of any trashy magazines and coasters no one ever really used. The couch was stain-free, something Tony hadn't experienced in months, and the bar had been neatly organized. Tony Stark, however, was quite the opposite. He was dressed in the black tank top with a hole in the middle for his arc reactor and a dirty pair of Hulk pajama bottoms. There was a smear of something dark across his chin and his hair was an absolute mess.

Tony grabbed Bucky's flesh hand, who flinched slightly but still allowed him to do so wordlessly, and practically dragged him to get first aid. The Soldier was definitely wary of the penthouse. His feet dug into the ground and he scoped out the entire room at least twice in the last minute. But Tony didn't really care at the moment. He didn't want him to just stand there in the elevator. What would Steve think if Tony just left his best friend to bleed out in his own house?

Oh shit. He forgot about Steve.

Tony paused in the middle of disinfecting Bucky's abdomen. Did Steve know Bucky was here? He glanced up at the Soldier, who seemed to be unnerved in the white, sterilized room of the medical wing. Tony understood the feeling; he never liked this place either.

He just finished stitching up a cut on Bucky's leg when he stood up abruptly and left the room. Tony watched him walk away and, going against his better judgment, followed after him. Bucky went back to the elevator and punched the down button, tapping his foot impatiently.

"Your arm looks all kinds of fucked up."

Silence.

"I could fix it, you know."

"No," came the gruff response.

"Please?"

More silence. Tony ignored the little spark of frustration that flared up inside him. Bucky obviously wasn't going to cooperate so he decided to take a different approach.

"Where're you going?"

"Away."

"Away to where?"

"Not here." Tony flinched. The last comment stung him a little as he remembered a certain redhead and blond supersoldier leave with their suitcases packed. He wouldn't allow anyone else to leave so easily, regardless of how short they stayed.

"Why don't you stay?"

Bucky shrugged. The elevator doors slid open and he stepped inside but Tony caught the hem of his shirt. The assassin turned his head slightly and side glanced the engineer.

"Stay. At least for a couple days." Tony didn't want to let Bucky roam around the city with wounds like his. Even with the serum, it was going to take a while to heal.

Bucky, however had different ideas. He plucked off Tony's fingers and pressed the lobby button. The elevator began to close but oh, Tony wasn't nearly done yet. He crammed his hands between the crack and pried the doors open. Or at least he tried to. The best he did was jam it. Bucky looked mildly surprised and incredibly ticked off. He growled.

"What are you doing?"

"I won't tell Steve."

If this wasn't the Winter Soldier, Tony would've thought he'd seen a small smile. Bucky actually seemed to think about it before realizing that this crazy billionaire wasn't going to give in. He rolled his eyes and opened the door himself. ('With one arm too, what a showoff' Tony couldn't help but think.)

"Fine. A few days. That's it," Bucky said as he walked past the man back into the penthouse.

Tony grinned. This was going to be fun.


End file.
